Pulling the Strings
by ardee
Summary: Two duelists of great skill meet to do battle simply for the sake of doing battle. What will the results be? Featuring Jason, my OC, and Illidan Stormrage, that of Illidan the Half Demon, used with his permission. Great dueling inside!


**Pulling the Strings**

**To be very honest, it's difficult for me to write Nightrise at the moment. I've been swamped with a hell of a lot of work, and I've kind of hit a writer's block. I've been able to work around these with some difficulty before, but I've reached a point in the story where sub-par writing is unacceptable. That's why I'm taking a short break from it, and bringing you Pulling the Strings, a fic based almost exclusively on a duel between my OC, Jason, and that of my good friend, Illidan the Half Demon. You don't need to read his stories to understand what's going on. Just enjoy the duel.**

Illidan Stormrage's life could hardly be described as peaceful. In the span of just ten years, he had been invited into a Duel Monsters tournament which was actually controlled by a five thousand year old madman with nothing but revenge on his mind, gotten involved with a _ten_ thousand year old fanatic who wanted to _purify_ the world, and finally had his wife kidnapped by another five thousand year old maniac who, for some reason also seemed to think a lot about revenge.

A normal person would've wondered why very old, revenge-obsessed men seemed to target him so much. But Illidan, being the holder of the Millennium Key, and one of the most powerful Shadow Magic users on the planet, was used to it by now. He had the resources to deal with things like this, and once each incident got over, he tended to forget about it and move on.

But there were times, of course, when he longed just for something a little similar, if not just as exciting, as those events, to relieve the incredible boredom that plagued him at the moment.

His wife, Marie, was nearly eight months pregnant, and had reached the point where she really didn't feel like leaving their house much. And as much as he loved her, and would never admit it, he was a bit annoyed at the moment.

Marie was busy talking to Tea Gardner Moto on her cell-phone. Illidan knew better than to interrupt her when she was talking to one of her female friends. However, he knew she'd probably keep herself busy for the rest of the evening, which gave him the rare opportunity to go for a walk, and perhaps do what he liked best: dueling.

He put on a jacket, and mouthed 'goodbye' to Marie, before creeping towards the door. He silently left the house, and breathed a sigh of relief.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It was now about ten p.m. Illidan had been walking the streets of Domino for quite some time now, just enjoying the fresh air. He was very lucky Marie hadn't called him by now, screaming for him to return that very instant.

Once regarded the capital of dueling, having produced legends such as Yugi Moto, Seto Kaiba, and Joey Wheeler, the dueling standards of the city had dropped drastically. Rather than focusing on the basics of the game and developing strategies that were reliable and easy to use, budding duelists were attempting to emulate the incredibly complicated tactics of their idols. Walking out of one of the game shops in the area, Illidan had seen an eager father buying his twelve-year old son a mint condition Time Wizard (500/400) for sixty dollars. Sixty dollars!

He sighed. He was hoping to meet some duelist whom he could challenge. It seemed like it was not to be so.

He turned around, and began walking towards his own home at a brisk pace.

On his way back, he passed a large warehouse. Inside, he heard loud grunts and shouts of anger. He frowned, and paused. A large group seemed to be talking loudly among themselves. Suddenly, there was a pause in the arguments, and it seemed like another individual was calmly making himself heard. Another loud voice resumed, a heated tension visible in his voice.

After one more reply from the other person, he heard a loud array of cries from the group.

Someone was going to get hurt. Illidan braced his shoulder against the door. It seemed to have been chained on the inside, as it refused to give way. He frowned, and rammed his side into it again. A numbing pain shot up his shoulder, but he ignored it. A creak could be heard, giving him hope.

Forcing Shadow magic into his arm, he leapt against it one more time. The chain shattered and the doors were flung wide open. Illidan stumbled inside, fists up in anticipation of a possible fight.

To his surprise, he saw a single figure standing among a group of five unconscious bodies. Three men were still standing, surrounding him. They looked nervous, even though the shortest of the lot was about six feet tall, and weighed perhaps two hundred pounds. The other man seemed to be sorely outmatched, even though he was no dwarf himself. He was taller than Illidan at six foot two, and while his frame was quite lithe, overall, Illidan noticed muscles rippling underneath his sleeveless gray T-Shirt. His hair was jet-black, and his features, most prominently his enigmatic black eyes, were emotionless.

Illidan took a step forward in alarm, but he seemed a little too late for it, whatever _it_ was. The tall man in the middle moved so fast, that Illidan was almost convinced that he was looking at a man who could use Shadow magic, then and there. His fist had come into contact with the first thug's jaw. The man froze up immediatley, his body being lifted into the air. In the same movement, his attacker moved to intercept another punch with his hand. He twisted towards the perpetrator, and with a flick of his neck had dealt him a devastating headbutt to the face.

The crack was so loud that Illidan heard it from where he was standing. He looked on in shock as the man who now seemed to be at a massive advantage deftly dodged a clumsy punch by the final thug. He took two long strides inward. It seemed like he was about to either deal him a roundhouse kick, or punch his lights out, but he chose a far more subtle method of disabling his opponent.

He pressed close, and the thug's eyes went wide. His breath caught, and for a moment it seemed like he was frozen in mid-air. However, he soon fell away. The stranger's fingers were extended into mid-air, for a jab to the thug's solar plexus.

The black-haired mystery man stood like that for a moment, before turning his attention to Illidan. Their lines of vision crossed.

Illidan narrowed his eyes. He kept his palm hidden against his jeans, but within it was a sphere of crackling Shadow magic, which he was prepared to use. What kind of man took out eight huge thugs in such a short span of time?

"Illidan Stormrage."

It was not a question. It was more a statement, although what it could mean, besides the stranger showing off his knowledge of mid-level duelists (Illidan had never really participated in the World or Intercontinental Championships, despite holding both titles at one point), Illidan had no idea.

"Why did you hurt those men?" growled the former holder of the Millennium Key.

"I fail to see how that is any of your concern," replied the other man coolly. "As you may have noticed, I am a dangerous man against those who cause me problems. I advise you to go on your way. I have things to do which do not concern you."

"Unless you're law enforcement, which I highly doubt, I don't see what gives you the right to hurt these men without any-…."

"You're hardly one to lecture me on collateral damage in a larger scenario," retorted the stranger. "I know of your involvement with the Paradias organization. Kouga, Randy Deadman, Kiba, Darcia… The list does indeed get a little long. You could have chosen to sacrifice your own life instead of eliminating them."

Illidan looked shocked. How did this man know the details of his entanglement with Dartz's insane scheme?

"I can sense your shock," he taunted. "Understandable. The organization I work for has access to duel records and information not available to many others."

Illidan tried to muster a response. "But… What the hell did they do?"

The other man walked over to one of the unconscious men, and kicked him onto his side. From within his jacket spilled out several packages, containing powder.

"Drug smugglers," breathed Illidan. The stranger ignored him, walking over to another of the thugs. He bent down and pulled off a watch from his wrist, before throwing it to Illidan, who caught it in surprise.

"What the-…" It was a Rolex, made of solid gold.

The stranger had pulled off another of the thug's watches, and thrown it to the floor. He stamped down on it. When he lifted his foot, the apparently unbreakable metal was in ruins.

"A rather undesirable group of criminals, smuggling a variety of items in sizable quantities. The size of this warehouse, I think, is good evidence. The organization I worked for believed that they would cause problems in sensitive regions with their illicit activities, and I was told to ensure that this does not continue. If you had not chanced upon me, I would have destroyed their merchandise by now."

Illidan nodded dumbly. He had not expected this.

"Who… Who are you?"

The man looked back at him with piercing eyes. "My name is Jason Becker."

Illidan had broken out of his shock. "Pretty impressive work back there. Eight guys…."

Jason nodded. "Your compliments are appreciated. I have followed your dueling career with interest over the years, Mr. Stormrage. Your credentials are not as impressive as those of Yugi Moto or Seto Kaiba, but your strategies have impressed me. I need to leave this town by morning, but before that, I have always considered the idea of dueling you with interest."

"You…. You duel?" asked Illidan, surprised.

"My professional career was short, but, some would say, impressive. I was runner-up in the Los Angeles Regional Championships. I chose to work for my organization full-time instead."

Illidan jumped at the opportunity. "You want to duel tonight?"

"Yes, it would be a rather interesting experience. If you are actually considering it, perhaps you could speak to your friend Mr. Kaiba and ask him if we could use his Duel Dome for one night."

Illidan considered. He had no idea how this man Jason knew so much about him. But on the other hand, he really had nothing to lose. If there was anyone on the _planet_ who had no trouble dealing with weirdoes of any kind, it was Illidan. If Jason was indeed phoney, Illidan could disable him in a moment, no matter how good of a fighter he was. If he wasn't, Illidan was sure he had set himself up for a really good duel.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The phone call to Kaiba had been short, but, however, contrary to the phrase, not sweet at all. The CEO had been his usual curt and abrupt self on the phone. He had agreed to have a word with his subordinates to allow Illidan entry to the Dome, on the condition that nothing was damaged. A bemused Illidan sighed, and went there to wait.

After about half an hour, he found himself wondering how stupid he really was to accept this duel. Jason could've been a member of a rival gang for all he knew. It was just the detailed information he knew about Illidan's past that made him even scarcely believable.

Just as it touched eleven p.m., and a frustrated Illidan found himself almost ready to leave, footsteps echoed through the corridors of the inside of the Duel Dome, leading to the main arena. Illidan looked up to see the tall, grim-faced Jason Becker walking towards him, dressed in a gray sleeveless T-Shirt, a black jacket, and jeans.

"So you made it," muttered Illidan. He slid his Duel Disk onto his arm. "No offense, but I hope this doesn't waste my time."

Jason did the same, and fired off the holo projectors. "I can assure you, Mr. Stormrage, this will be anything but a waste of time."

"One thing…" murmured Illidan as he drew his opening hand.

"What's that?"

"Call me Illidan."

(Illidan: 8000, Jason: 8000)

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**There. Weak story, I know, but I didn't want it to be just a duel. Illidan and Marie Stormrage belong to my friend Illidan the Half Demon, and are borrowed with his permission. Jason Becker is mine. This takes place neither in my universe, where Illidan and Marie does not exist, nor Illidan's, where Jason and his organization were never born. It's a third universe where both events preceded uninterrupted up until this point, as they are largely unconnected until now.**

**I hope you guys enjoy this fic. This will be the shortest chapter, as all the others will be my regular ten thousand words. It's a short term project, containing only the duel and its build-up and aftermath, something I decided to write on a whim. The first part of the duel should be up within a few days (I hope).**

**LAKERS ARE CHAMPS!!!!!!!!!!!!**


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